Treatment of ores containing precious metals.



UNTTE STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FREDERICK W'ILL'IAM MARTINO, OF SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND.

TREATMENT OF ORES CONTAINING PRECIOUS METALS.

SPECIFICATION forming-part of Letters Patent No. 716,847, dated December23, 1902. Original application filed September 30, 1901, Serial No.77,139. Divided and this application filed October '7, 1902. Serial Toall whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK WILLIAM MARTINO, a subject of the King ofEngland, residing in Sheffield, Yorkshire, England, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in or Relating to the Treatment ofOres Containing Noble Metals, (for which I have made application forLetters Patent in Germany under Serial No. 20,870, dated September 26,1901; in France, dated October 3, 1901; in Russia, dated October 3/16,1901; in Transvaal, dated October 22, 1901; in Canada, dated October 26,1901; in British Guiana, dated October 31, 1901; in Natal, datedNovember 4, 1901; in West Australia, dated November 7, 1901; in Mexico,dated November 8, 1901; in Rhodesia, South Australia, Cape Colony, andVictoria, dated November 12, 1901; in New South Wales and New Zealand,dated November 13, 1901; in Orange River Colony, Queensland, andTasmania, dated November 1 1, 1901; in Peru, dated November 18, 1901; inChile, dated November 25, 1901; in Gold Coast Colony, dated December 18,1901; in Great Britain, dated April 24:, 1902; in Spain, dated April 26,1902, and in Portugal, dated April 28, 1902,) of which the following isa specification, this being a division of my application, Serial No.77,139, filed September 30, 1901.

This invention relates to the treatment of ores containing noble metalsmixed with bodies such as tellurium, selenium, sulfur, arsenic,antimony, tin, phosphorus, or the like its object being to provide meansfor separating the noble metals from such bodies.

In carrying out this invention use is made of a compound whose componentparts are barium, sulfur, and carbon and which is hereinafter referredto as barium sulfo carbid. This compound, barium sulfo carbid, may bemade by fusing two parts, by weight, of barium sulfate, (baryta or heavyspar,) BaSO,, in an electric furnace with one part of carbon. The carbonis preferably in the form of charcoal, coke, or anthracite. A current ofabout two hundred and fifty to three hundred amperes and, about onehundred volts is sufficient, the furnace used being similar to thoseextensively employed in the manu- (No specimens) facture of calciumcarbid. Barium sulfo carbid when brought into contact with water gives01f sulfureted hydrogen, (E 3,) and for this reason is applicable, amongother purposes, to the conversion of metals and other bodies intosulfids.

According to this invention ores containing gold or other noble metalsmixed with bodies such as tellurium, selenium, sulfur, arsenic,antimony, tin, phosphorus, or the like are ground and heated in areducing (mufiile) furnace with powdered barium sulfo carbid, the resultbeing that the bodies above mentioned are converted into solublesulfids, in which condition they may be removed by washing the mixturewith water. In this process the gold or other noble metals remainunafiected and may be extracted by any desired means. If dissolved outby bromid or cyanid or chlorid solutions in the case of gold or oyanidor nitrate solutions in the case of silver, they may be precipitatedtherefrom by either adding barium sulfo carbid to the solution or byfirst treating some barium sulfo carbid with water (preferablyacidified) and then leading the gas evolved into the solution. In bothcases the gold or other precious metals will be precipitated as sulfide.When dealing with cyanid extractions, the solutions should be kept acid,preferably by the employment of hydrochloric acid.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is- 1. The processof separating the noble metals from ores containing tellurium, selenium,sulfur, arsenic, antimony, tin, phosphorus or the like consisting inheating the mixture with barium sulfo carbid and then treating it withwater.

2. The process of separating gold from ores containing tellurium,selenium, sulfur, arsenic, antimony, tin, phosphorus or the like,consisting in grinding the mixture, heating it with powdered bariumsulfo carbid in a reducing (muffle) furnace and then dissolving out thesoluble sulfids thus formed.

3. The process of separating gold from ores containing tellurium,selenium, sulfur, arsenic, antimony, tin, phosphorus or the likeconsisting in grinding the mixture heating it with powdered barium sulfocarbid in a rename to this specification in the presence of ducing(muflie) furnace dissolving out the two subscribing Witnesses. solublesulfids thus formed treating the solid residue with a gold solvent andprecipitating 5 the gold therefrom by the employment of Witnesses:

barium sulfo carbid. LUTHUR J. FARR,

In testimony whereof I have signed my ARTHUR H. LOCEWOOD.

FREDERICK WILLIAM MARTINO.

